MMDA told: Stick to 'gentleman's agreement' on billboards

MANILA, Philippines - The Outdoor Advertising Association of the Philippines (OAAP) yesterday reminded the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to abide with a “gentleman’s agreement” it made with the group.

The OAAP said the MMDA, during a hearing last Sept. 21, assured the group’s members that no billboards will be rolled down until a Makati City court rules on a petition for the issuance of a preliminary injunction on the MMDA’s anti-billboard drive.

The group said if MMDA chairman Francis Tolentino reneges on the agreement, the OAAP “will take the necessary punitive action against the chairman and the MMDA.”

The hearing on the petition was suspended after Makati City Regional Trial Court Branch 133 Judge Elpidio Calis granted a request by the MMDA to inhibit himself from the case. The petition has yet to be raffled off to another Makati City judge.

In his order dated Sept. 1, Judge Calis granted the petition for a 20-day temporary restraining order (TRO) sought by the OAAP to prevent the MMDA from dismantling billboards along major roads, including EDSA.

The OAAP alleged the MMDA violated the proprietary rights of its members when it launched its billboard crackdown last May “in complete disregard (of) the procedures outlined in the law and without according due process.” The group said the Supreme Court, in the MMDA versus Bel-Air Association case, ruled that the agency has no legislative and police powers to enact and implement ordinances.

The MMDA has removed several billboards along EDSA for allegedly violating the National Building Code and for being too “sexy.”

The MMDA also filed a total of 18 cases against billboard operators in Makati and Quezon City courts for operating without the required permits from the MMDA, Department of Public Works and Highways, and local government units.